NBJC Recognizes National Gay Men's HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

September 27, 2017 11:19 AM

Today is National Gay Men's HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NGMHAAD), an annual observance designed to raise awareness about the disproportionate impact of HIV and AIDS on gay and bisexual men in the United States. The National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC)—America's leading Black LGBTQ/same gender loving (SGL) civil rights organization focused on federal public policy—joins leaders, activists, advocates, communities and families across our nation to highlight opportunities to disrupt the impact that this pandemic continues to have among Black gay and bisexual men in the United States.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Black gay and bisexual men are more affected by HIV than any other group of Americans. Though the number of new diagnoses declined for African Americans as a whole in recent years, diagnoses among African American gay and bisexual men increased during the same period.

In 2014, gay and bisexual men comprised an estimated 2% of the U.S. population but represented 56% of people living with HIV. In 2015, gay and bisexual men accounted for 67% of all new HIV diagnoses in the U.S. Among all gay and bisexual men who received an HIV diagnosis in the U.S. in 2015, African Americans accounted for the highest number of individuals impacted by HIV (10,315; 39%), followed by whites (7,570; 29%) and Hispanics/Latinos (7,013; 27%).

On this NGMHAAD, NBJC is asking for your leadership to raise awareness about the work that remains to be done to eliminate HIV/AIDS among Black gay and bisexual men. Please share the information below on how to start a conversation about HIV prevention. Find a local HIV testing site and consider creative ways to encourage testing in your family and community.

There is an urgent need for every member of the diverse Black community to stand up and take action to reduce stigma and stop the transmission of HIV/AIDS. The resources required to end the epidemic exist, the question is will you use them?